Colaptes rivolii (Boissonneau, 1840)

Common Name and Size

Colaptes rivolii, commonly called the crimson-mantled woodpecker, measures 23 to 26 cm (9.1 to 10 inches) in length and weighs 85 to 112 g (3.0 to 4.0 oz). Males and females share the same plumage pattern across most of the body, differing only in head plumage.

Nominate Subspecies Male Head Plumage

For the nominate subspecies C. r. rivolii, adult males have a red crown, a mostly pale yellow face with a dark red malar stripe, and black chin and throat.

Nominate Subspecies Female Head Plumage

Adult females of the nominate subspecies have a black crown and a black malar stripe.

Nominate Subspecies Upperpart Plumage

Both sexes of the nominate subspecies have a crimson red nape and mantle, black rump and uppertail coverts, bronzy red wings, and a black tail.

Nominate Subspecies Underpart Plumage

Their underparts are yellow, with black and red scallop-shaped markings on the breast and sometimes black spots on the belly.

Bare Part Characteristics

The species has a black bill, red-brown to brown irises, and pale gray legs.

Juvenile Plumage

Juveniles are generally duller in color than adults, lack red on the breast, and males have a blacker crown than adult males.

C. r. atriceps Subspecies Distinction

Most subspecies differ very little from the nominate, with the exception of C. r. atriceps. Males of C. r. atriceps have a black crown that is more extensive than the black crown of females of this subspecies. Both sexes of C. r. atriceps have no red on the breast, and their wings are less red than the wings of the nominate subspecies.

Subspecies Distribution

The subspecies of crimson-mantled woodpecker are distributed across different regions of the northern and central Andes as follows: C. r. quindiuna is found in Colombia's Cordillera Central; C. r. zuliensis is found in the Serranía del Perijá on the Colombia-Venezuela border; C. r. rivolii is found from Colombia's Cordillera Oriental into northwestern Venezuela; C. r. meridae is found in the Andes of northwestern Venezuela between Trujillo and Táchira; C. r. brevirostris is found in the Andes from southwestern Colombia, south through Ecuador, into central Peru; C. r. atriceps is found in the Andes of southeastern Peru and western and central Bolivia (this subspecies is not included in the species' published range map).

Habitat

The crimson-mantled woodpecker inhabits the interior and edges of humid montane forest, and the lower edge of the páramo zone.

Elevation Range in Ecuador

In Ecuador, it mostly occurs at elevations between 2,000 and 3,300 m (6,600 and 10,800 ft).